Pot found hidden behind store's 'false wall'

March 04, 2009

Several hundred pounds of marijuana were recovered from behind a basement wall Wednesday night and a man was arrested during a bust at a grocery store on Chicago's Far South Side.

Chicago police and members of the Illiana Regional Gang Task Force executed a search warrant at the Taste of Mexico on the 12200 block of South Halsted Street at 6:22 p.m., said South Chicago District Cmdr. Eric Carter.

A semi-automatic handgun also was recovered, police said.

Recio Cruz, 38, of the South Side, was charged with the manufacture and distribution of cannabis, Carter said.

Task force members received information that marijuana was being kept in "multiple rooms" at the store, Carter said.

As it turned out, 300 pounds of marijuana were found behind a "false wall" in the basement, while "some paraphernalia and different things throughout the store contributed to the distribution," he said.

The investigation started in a south suburb and "led us back into the city," said district Lt. Maury Richards, who had been on the scene Wednesday night.

"It seemed to be a large-scale operation. Cannabis was being sold in pound increments," Richards said.

The marijuana distribution operation at the store had been going on "for some time," the lieutenant said. "We're sure an operation that large is part of an organization, and that's part of our investigation at this point."

The marijuana and handgun were displayed to the media Wednesday night in the auditorium of the South Chicago District police station, 2255 E. 103rd St.